The Ziblings
The Ziblings is a short story written by Conner, during one of his English classes. It’s about a family of adopted siblings with superhuman powers who fight crime in Big City, USA. The story follows Bolt and his adopted brothers and sister as they stop the evil plans of the Snake Lord. The story is first mentioned in An Author's Odyssey, when Conner thinks of the idea to travel into his own short stories to recruit an army. He and Alex then retrieve the story from Mrs. Peters, along with 3 other stories - Starboardia, Galaxy Queen, and The Adventures of Blimp Boy. When Conner became a writer, he adapted and expanded the short story into a set of graphic novels, collectively called the "Ziblings graphic novels".TLOS VI, prologue, p. 9 " "The next story is called 'The Ziblings,'" Conner explained. "It's about four kids with superhuman powers. They all lost their parents at an early age and went to live at the same orphanage. One night, an asteroid carrying cosmic radiation hit their orphanage and affected their DNA, giving them phenomenal abilities. They were adopted by a billionaire astrophysicist named Professor Wallet and taken to his laboratory, where he raised them and trained them to become superheroes." "''TLOS V, ch 18, p. 287 Plot At the Big City Bank, citizens were patiently waiting for their turn to open new accounts or apply for loans. Suddenly, five armed robbers called ''The Rat Pack stormed into the bank, firing their guns and demanding that the tellers empty the safe into their duffel bags. Just then, a superhero showed up - Bolt. He pried open the window and crawled through the small opening, but stepped on his cape and slipped off the windowsill, crashing onto the floor behind a desk and accidentally alerting everyone to his presence. The hero was revealed to be an adorable boy no more than twelve years old, and at the sight of him, the hostages lost all hope and the robbers began insulting him. The young boy zapped them with his powers, which did little than to annoy them; they began attacking him, and tied him to a chair. As the Pack prepared to leave, three more superheroes - Blaze, Whipney, and Morph - dropped in from the domed ceiling, and all the citizens sighed with relief at the older Ziblings' arrival, while the Pack got nervous. The heroes quickly moved to tackle the robbers, and after a brief fight, the bad guys were subdued. The Ziblings, minus Bolt, went to speak to the reporters, taking all the credit and soaking up all the attention, leaving Bolt behind. Then they left in the Zibling Mobile. They arrived at the secret laboratory, which was underground in an abandoned subway tunnel. After some moments of peace, the Ziblings were notified of an attack in Paris - the Snake Lord had taken over the Eiffel Tower, accompanied by Collared Joe, Lizzy Liza, and a long procession of serpents. the superhero siblings, minus Bolt, immediately headed to Paris to help, leaving the youngest Zibling behind. Unfortunately, not long after the three Ziblings arrived at the Eiffel Tower, they were captured by the Snake Lord. Alternate ending caused by Alex and Conner's presence Alex and Conner pretended that they were student reporters from the Otherworld Times, there to do a story all about Bolt. They managed to boost his confidence so much that he was convinced to go save his siblings. At the Eiffel Tower, the three of them defeated Collared Joe and Lizzy Liza, and Bolt headed to handle the Snake Lord himself, despite the attempt to stop him by his siblings. The Snake Lord, infuriated by Bolt's remarks, threw him off the tower. Everyone thought he was dead, but he emerged at his full power and single-handedly defeated the villain and all the snakes. The other three Ziblings apologized for their doubt and belittlement, and gave all the credit for saving the city to their little brother. Professor Wallet showed up and embraced his youngest adopted son, and declared that the City of Light will now be remembered as the City of Lightning from now on. The reunited family were then asked for a favor by Alex and Conner. Original Ending A week later, when Professor Wallet returned to the laboratory, he gave Bolt a pep talk that boosted his confidence; he then headed to Paris on his own to save his brothers and sister. His powers kicked in, and he managed to defeat the Snake Lord and save his siblings, restoring their bond as a family. Inspiration According to Conner, the older Ziblings weren't based on Alex, while Professor Wallet was based on her and not Mrs. Peters.TLOS V, ch 21, p. 335 Bolt's uniform was the color of Charlotte's nursing scrubs, which signified her importance to Conner.TLOS V, ch 24, p. 374 Alex had assumed that the bank robbers were "based on the Rat Pack from the sixties", but they were actually original, and the similarity in their names was just a coincidence.TLOS V, ch 19, p. 293 Alex had also observed that Big City, USA, the city in which the Ziblings reside, had the "characteristics of every American city she could think of", such as: * Subway stations like in New York City * Bridges like in San Francisco * Surrounding Great Lakes like in Chicago * Big City, USA written across a hillside like the Hollywood sign Also, the Big City Bank was a "large white building with thick pillars and a massive dome", which reminded Alex of the Capitol building in Washington, DC.TLOS V, ch 19, p. 291 References Category:Conner's stories